Dragonhyde
by JoshNeku
Summary: Dragons and Vikings have been at war for generations. Vikings capture the dragons and use them to help train younger Vikings. Reiku is terrified of dragons, but reluctantly becomes friends with a special Night Fury, something Elder Xehanort may be all too happy about. Triple crossover with KH, HTTYD, and TWEWY. VanRei, JoshNeku, AkuRoku, with hints of Cleon, Zemyx. T to be safe.
1. Flames of Premonition

Flames of Premonition

**This is actually my first HTTYD story I've written, but it's a crossover, so...yeah...**

**Well, anyway, this is a story me and my friend, Animesaki, are doing. She's my co-author/beta/etc person! :D Thank you for all your help~**

**Also, yes the title of this story is spelled correctly, so don't correct me on how 'hyde' is spelled since that is how we wanted to spell it.**

**Also for those of you who haven't read my other Rei/Van stories, Reiku is Riku Repilca. Calling him Reiku is just easier than calling him that.**

**As for updates, I'm not sure. Perhaps every month? Or earlier. I'm trying to focus more on my originals than fanfics, but since it's summer and I've already signed up for classes for fall, I got a lot of free time so we'll see. I might also base it off of how many reviews I get.**

**And no just 'please update, I like it'. I do enjoy them because it makes me feel fluffy inside, but they get a bit tedious after a while and it doesn't give me any idea on HOW you liked it or what about the story made you like it.**

**This is also on JoshNeku on AO3 since I'm there, too.**

**Anyway, I don't own HTTYD, KH, and TWEWY; yes it will have TWEWY characters and pairings.**

**Please Read and Review. :3**

* * *

_The flames were hot and stifling as they continued licking at the wooden walls and thatch roof of the small house, causing it to creak and crackle piteously as it was eaten by the red-hot teeth._

_Portions of beam and patches of blazing straw dropped from the ceiling as the weakening structure creaked dangerously, about to cave._

_The silver-haired eight-year-old boy coughed from the dense smoke clogging the house, the heavy beam lying diagonally across his back, still pinning him to the ground, smolder filling his lungs and causing his vision to turn hazy._

"_Riku…!" the child squeaked, aquamarine eyes desperately scanning the house for any sign of his elder brother._

_Riku had to be somewhere. Their rooms were side by side so surely he would have come directly to Reiku's room to gather his younger brother and save him from the fire. But there was the chance that Riku had thought that Reiku had already gotten out of the burning house and was unaware that his sibling was going to die of smoke inhalation before the flames would finally consume his body, leaving nothing but other Vikings to find his charred husk when they began to clean up the damage._

_Once again, Reiku pushed his hands against the warm floor, struggling to draw himself up on his trembling arms, attempting to shove the beam off his back. The smoldering parts of the rafter oppressively pressed against his back began to burn through the light shirt he wore and seared the skin beneath, but Reiku barely registered the sensation of pain as his flesh burned from the smolders._

_The boy collapsed again as the weight of the beam became too much for his weak arms to continue supporting, breathing heavily. He shoved against the floor again in another weak attempt to shove the beam off._

_Reiku glanced around the dim room, pieces of flaming wood and thatch dropping to the floor and setting alight anything that wasn't on fire._

"_Dad?"_

_More pieces of the roof collapsed as the fire burned faster, getting closer to Reiku's trapped form as if eager to start feasting on the boy._

_He was going to die there. No one was going to find him until the house was reduced to blackened tinder and the clean-up and clear out of destroyed houses began._

_The silverette lay there as the fire continued to crackle, his hearing beginning to fade as his body started to pass out. His only relief was that he would at least be unconscious when the fire started eating at his flesh and would be unable to feel the pain._

"—_ku….!"_

_The boy blinked as the black claws of unconsciousness slowly released him, reluctant to let Reiku stay in the conscious realm in the minutes before his death._

_Had that been his imagination? Was his smoke-clogged mind playing tricks on him, making him believe that in the last moments of his life he had heard a voice calling for him, someone searching for him through the flames?_

_"Reiku!"_

_The voice was low and rough and laced with a panic and worry Reiku had never heard before._

_It was his dad!_

_Reiku glanced up with an eagerness he knew he shouldn't have, hearing the sound of rapid footsteps approaching, mingling with the crackling of the fire. Someone really was there! Someone was coming for him!_

"_Dad?" he questioned weakly, hoping that he would actually make it out of the blazing house alive._

_Sephiroth was the best when it came to dealing with dragon-related incidents. Reiku and the whole village knew how brave and fearless he was when it came to facing danger with unwavering courage._

_"Reiku!" the voice called again, louder this time._

_Sephiroth was getting closer to where Reiku was trapped and the boy was beginning to swell with relief. He would live to see the next day._

_"Dad!"_

_A tall man in his early thirties appeared amidst the flames, lengthy mane of silver hair set aglow by the flickering flames and making him appear like a god coming to see the destruction of the world as it burned._

_Pale green eyes scanned the house before widening when they spotted Reiku, unnatural cat-like pupils dilating to adjust to the smoky atmosphere._

"_Reiku!"_

_Immediately, Sephiroth strode toward his trapped son, long legs causing him to reach the beam in a few steps, the fire seeming to not affect him._

_The man easily pushed the beam off Reiku with his amazing strength, ignoring the thud the piece of wood created as it hit the floor, gathering the boy into his arms and holding him close in a protective gesture._

_Quickly, Sephiroth made his way through the burning maze, holding Reiku tightly as he was afraid of losing one of his precious sons, halting when a beam landed in front of him with a crash, sending hot embers scattering into the dense air. He bared his teeth slightly at the blockage keeping him from reaching the outside, Sephiroth looked around for another way out._

_There had to be another way. There just had to be. All the silver-haired man could see was flames and smoke, hearing the dangerous noise of the house beginning to collapse under its weakened weight._

_Alarmed at the rapidly deteriorating house, Sephiroth tossed Reiku outside without a second thought, concerned more for his son's safety than his own. He would rather save Reiku and let himself be sacrificed than allow both of them to die and leave Riku all alone._

_Reiku gave a small yelp as he landed on the cool grass, rolling a few feet from the force of the throw until he landed on his stomach._ _Slowly shaking his head, Reiku glanced up as he heard loud cracking and splintering coming from his house, belatedly realizing that Sephiroth was not beside him._

_Sephiroth was still trapped inside the burning home._

_The young boy watched in horror as the house finally caved in as the flames finally claimed the remainder of the house's supporting structures and collapsed with a resounding crash, sending cinders and smoke into the black night sky._

_Reiku screamed his grief and pain, tears streaming down his face as his hands grasped the grass beneath him, barely hearing the sounds other crackling houses and screams of fighting Vikings and roaring dragons in the distance._

"_Dad!"_

* * *

Reiku bolted upright in his bed, panting as the thin brown blanket sank to this waist and pooled around his hips, cold sweat forming on his bare back and forehead like condensation.

It had been nine years since the incident in which Sephiroth had sacrificed himself to save Reiku and every time Reiku had the nightmare of what had happened that night he knew what was going to occur.

There would be a dragon raid at some point later that night.

Reiku sighed as he calmed down, running a hand through his damp silver hair in an effort to soothe himself.

He would have to tell Riku of his nightmare who would in turn warn the village elder of the possible upcoming dragon attack so that everyone could be prepared. Animals would be rounded up and boarded up to prevent the dragons from picking them off to take them off to who knows where and large torches would be raised and lit so the Vikings could see the dragons flying around the dark sky, making it easier to attack them.

That had been the life of the Vikings for many centuries, fighting the dragons that stole livestock and fish from their village. It had only been in the last fifty years that they had begun to capture the dragons, placing them in cages specifically designed to keep them in, and used them to train young Vikings in how to combat them.

Throwing the blanket off him, Reiku placed his feet on the cold wood floor and stood up, pushing his sleeping pants off his hips in a fluid movement before tossing them on the bed. He turned slightly, searching for some clothes to put on for the day, revealing a nasty burn scar stretching from the back of his right arm to the bottom of his left shoulder blade.

The burn was another reminder of that cursed night where he had almost died, but didn't actually bother Reiku physically and it was usually hidden by his shirt so no one else in the village could see it, but the burn disturbed him emotionally since it was a reminder of Sephiroth's sacrifice. It was something Reiku would never forgive himself for, feeling that it was his fault Sephiroth had died in the first place.

After finding a pair of brown trousers and a short-sleeved grey tunic that would suffice, Reiku padded downstairs after putting them on, spotting Riku at the hearth making porridge for breakfast. He was always up before Reiku, usually by an hour, and Reiku had started to become used to the ritual of Riku already making breakfast by the time he was heading downstairs.

Riku was two years older than Reiku with slightly paler skin and the one who had taken care of Reiku after Sephiroth had died; their mother had passed after giving birth to Reiku so Reiku had never known her and Riku barely remembered her. Sephiroth had been both mother and father to them until his death then Riku had taken the role upon himself for the sake of Reiku.

With silver hair reaching inches past his shoulders and bright blue-green eyes, a lot of the villagers thought he looked a lot like Sephiroth and many of them expected Riku to keep up Sephiroth's legacy of being a ruthless dragon killer.

Riku was already wearing his loose blue trousers and black tunic with a white sleeveless jerkin over the shirt, obviously prepared for a day out. Reiku spotted the stiff white brace of deer bone around Riku's left wrist, a reminder of the time Riku had gotten his wrist broken by the precise whip of a Nadder's swift tail. It had never properly set right after the injury, but that didn't stop Riku from continuing to fight dragons, always managing to protect his vulnerable side from attack.

Riku glanced behind him when he heard Reiku coming down the stairs, pausing in his stirring as he smiled gently.

"Hey," he greeted casually, turning back to the cooking porridge. "Sleep well?"

Reiku nodded absently to Riku's question as the older sibling poured some honey and sprinkled a bit of mint into the porridge just the way he knew Reiku liked it, conscious as usual to his brother's likes and dislikes.

"Mm-hm. But I had the nightmare."

Riku hummed softly, already used to the response Reiku gave about how he slept during certain nights, dispensing a spoonful of the porridge into a bowl and holding it out to Reiku.

"I'll tell the elder then," he murmured as his brother reached for the offered item.

Reiku gave another nod, accepting the bowl as he sat at the small table beside the hearth, pouring himself a cup of lukewarm buttermilk.

Riku stood up after getting himself a bowl, sitting in the seat across from Reiku, joining his younger brother at the table. He quietly ate a few bites, watching Reiku with hawk eyes as if waiting for the silver-haired boy to do something. Riku gave a soft sigh, mixing it with a huff to get his brother's attention.

"Don't forget about dragon training around the beginning of the afternoon today."

Reiku choked on his bite of porridge, staring at Riku in astonishment as he dropped his spoon back into the bowl. Had Riku said what he thought he said?

"What?!" Reiku asked in a strangled voice, praying that he had misheard Riku and was still half-asleep or high-strung from the remnants of the nightmare.

"I signed you up for dragon training." Riku said simply, slurping his porridge as if this was a typical conversation that the two brothers shared every day.

Reiku slammed his hands on the table in protest. "Ri!"

Riku set down his spoon, staring at Reiku calmly in a way that Reiku was reminded of the way Sephiroth looked just before one of them would get a lecture. The look made Reiku grit his teeth, upset that Riku did look so much like their late father.

"Sorry, Rei, but you're of age and you have to get over your fear of dragons."

Reiku gripped the edge of the table, trembling slightly.

Get over his fear? After being trapped in a burning house set on fire by a Gronckle? When his dad, Riku's dad, died saving him from burning? There was no way that he could get over that phobia so easily, not when he felt so guilty that he had been the indirect cause of their father's death.

Requesting that he attend dragon training was like rubbing salt in the wound.

"Th…that's easier said than done, Ri…" Reiku whispered, attempting to keep the waver out of his voice so that Riku wouldn't try and comfort him as he usually did when he realized his brother was upset over things that happened in the past.

The older sibling sighed in mild resignation, standing up from his seat, already finished with his breakfast. He was typically a fast eater, as was any Viking bred to fight dragons at a moment's notice.

"I know, Rei." Riku assured as he set his bowl in the sink which was carved from a large slab of dark-colored rock. "But I'll be in your class and so will Sora and Ven."

Sora was Riku's boyfriend. They had been friends since they had been five and had started dating at fourteen. Sora's father had also died in the attack that had killed Sephiroth and Leon had practically adopted the sweet brunette since he had no one else to care for him.

Reiku bit his lip, still unsure about the idea of dragon training as many scenarios began to race through his mind.

What if he froze up during it? What if the dragon solely targeted him because it sensed he was terrified?

"I'll go tell the elder." Riku announced as he headed to the front door, stepping into his shoes set at the threshold. "Then I'm meeting with Sora."

Reiku nodded in response to what Riku was saying even though he was barely listening, stirring his porridge listlessly, not at all that hungry anymore at the thought of attending dragon training.

"Don't forget dragon training." Riku reminded quietly, opening the front door.

"Okay." Reiku responded automatically as the front door shut, leaving him alone with his thoughts about what he was going to do.

After a few seconds he sighed, shoving the bowl away from himself and standing up.

He needed to go talk to Cloud. Cloud always had good answers to his problems.

* * *

"Elder Xehanort?" Riku questioned as he respectfully knocked on the door of the dilapidated house situated near the far back of the village, far away from the main commons. "Are you in?"

Xehanort was not only the elder of the village but the chief as well. He had founded the village in his youth, naming the tiny settlement after the Life Tree because of how warm the island remained year round, and had been a terrifying dragon killer; Xehanort the Heartless was a name practically every Viking knew and dreaded. He was more famous than Sephiroth, the Silver Demon.

Even at the age of sixty-eight, Xehanort was still very powerful despite his broad, hunched shoulders and crooked back. The feeble appearance he wore belied his true strength and agility. He was still very much powerful and that was what warranted respect from the villagers.

Xehanort also dressed the most elaborate in the village with a white sleeveless tunic beneath a white and black coat that had red inner lining and wide sleeves as well as black trousers.

"Ah, yes, come in, Riku." Xehanort voice sounded from inside as the clinking of something was heard.

It sounded like bottles of some sort, as if Xehanort were moving them around, but Riku wasn't entirely certain. He wasn't one to judge what the elder was doing in his private home during his own time.

Riku slowly entered the house, being careful not to push the warped door off its rusted hinges. The silver-haired teen still wondered why Xehanort refused to keep his house defended by updating the rotting wood and changing out the door for a stronger one that would help better keep his home from falling victim to a dragon's attack.

Inside, the house was cleaner, looking like a newer home than it did from the outside as if Xehanort were keeping up with the old saying of 'Don't judge a book by its cover', and had several homemade shelves lined along the walls with books that Xehanort had written himself or had gathered in the travels of his adolescence.

The skin of a Night Fury lay on the middle of the floor like an exotic rug, haunting pale green eyes staring at the ceiling; no one knew exactly how Xehanort had managed to find a Night Fury, let alone kill it, and that was why many feared and respected him as no one else had completed such a feat since the dragon was extremely elusive.

Xehanort sat at a table, scribbling something on a sheet of parchment with a charcoal pencil. Riku wasn't certain about what he was writing but it could have been another account of the adventures of his youth or a list of what was needed for the trader that would be visiting the island soon.

The elder glanced up as Riku paused several feet away from the desk, thin eyebrows rising slightly as his gold eyes stared at Riku stonily. The way he looked at Riku reminded the silver-haired teen of someone sizing up a horse to see if it fit their needs.

Finally, Xehanort smiled in a way that made Riku's hair stand on end. It was a smile reminiscent of someone ready, and eager, to spill blood at the drop of a silver coin.

"Good morning, Riku," Xehanort greeted pleasantly, setting his pencil down and interlocking his fingers to show that he was ready to listen to whatever was being said to him. "What can I do for you?"

Riku cleared his throat, maintaining eye contact with the tan, bald-headed man. He had to show that Xehanort did not intimidate him or make his skin crawl just by being in his presence; there was just something about Xehanort that did not settle comfortably with Riku.

"Reiku says there may be a dragon raid tonight."

"Oh?" Xehanort questioned, idly stroking his curled, silver goatee as he leaned back in his chair, taking in what Riku had told him. "Well, thank you for informing me, Riku."

The chair creaked slightly as Xehanort leaned forward, golden eyes glancing back down at the parchment as he began to write again.

Riku took that gesture as his cue to leave and turned around, making his way back to the door. He didn't want to spend any more of his time there than he already had; he had promised to meet up with Sora anyway and he had already taken too long.

After the front door had shut, a slow, cruel smile made its way onto Xehanort's face.

* * *

The hoe struck the loose ground and Cloud glanced up from his work, blue eyes controlled. He was normally a calm person, but there were times that he lost control of his emotions.

"You can't keep letting the guilt control you," he murmured, pushing his damp spiky blond hair out of his face so he could see better.

Cloud was twenty-one and the older brother of Ventus and Roxas, the twins being Sora's friends.

The three had their own cabbage patch beside their house which Cloud took immense care of and was more than willing to share the vegetable with the rest of the village when needed.

There was a rumor circulating around the village that Cloud was dating Leon, a farmer much like himself, though it had yet to be proven true. At the very least the two were friends because of the relationship between Cloud's brothers and Sora.

Reiku sighed, leaning against the side of Cloud's house with his arms crossed as he watched the blond continue tilling the soil to prepare the land for planting more cabbage seeds.

He should have expected such a response from Cloud; apparently something had happened several years ago and the blond had almost lost a dear friend to a dragon attack, but Cloud never went into further detail about the incident, just mentioning his friend had survived but not without severe burn scars on his back. He never even revealed his friend's name.

Cloud stopped in his work again, wiping his hands on his dark trousers to brush off the dirt before pulling at his sleeveless black tunic in an attempt to cool himself off, gazing at Reiku blankly as he breathed out.

"Don't you have dragon training soon?"

* * *

Reiku grumbled to himself as he made his way to the dragon arena, a several foot deep pit with metal bars and links set over the top like a dome to stop the dragons from flying out. The arena was set in the center of the island, the centerpiece of the village.

Inside the crater were five cages with big metal doors blocked with thick logs to prevent the captured dragons from breaking out; each door had a lever to open it, though one cage had the lever on the outside of the arena.

Currently, the pit contained three dragons: a Gronckle, a Deadly Nadder, and the ferocious Monstrous Nightmare.

Every so often though, it appeared as if the dragons managed to somehow smash free of their confinement despite the heavy locks and disappear, leaving several Vikings to try and capture more dragons during raids to replace the missing ones; they did need a certain amount of dragons within the arena to use as practice to hone the skills of Vikings-to-be.

Weapons and shields lay scattered on the ground, to be used during training sessions in order to beat the dragon the students were faced with without actually killing the beast. It had become a tradition that only the last student to make it to the finals got the honor of killing a dragon of their choosing.

Reiku sighed to himself as he entered the arena, noticing that he was the first one of his class to arrive. He honestly hadn't expected for Riku to be there waiting for him with Sora by his side and usually wherever Sora was Ventus followed.

But just because his brother and boyfriend weren't there didn't mean Reiku was alone.

Seifer and his two friends were there.

Seifer was part of the disciplinary committee, a group he had created to guard Yggdrasil by protecting the town from unruly Vikings though that mostly just meant Cid, who was usually drunk.

However despite the name, they were just bullies, using their committee to gloss over what they actually did, and mostly picked on Reiku because they knew of his fear of dragons and enjoyed exploiting the silver-haired boy's phobia in any way possible.

Seifer smirked as he spotted Reiku warily entering the arena, blue-green eyes sparking mischievously as he brushed his hands on his dark brown trousers before pulling at the white long-tailed jerkin that he wore; the jerkin covered a blue tunic cut at the base to reveal several inches of Seifer's toned stomach.

Reiku always thought that the way Seifer dressed was a way to try and attract females to him, but he had yet to see the females crowding around him like moths to a flame.

"Well, well, lookie who's come to join the party."

Reiku grimaced when the twenty-four-year-old trotted over to him with his two friends tagging behind him as if they were glued to his side which most of the time they were since the three were rarely seen separated from each other.

Seifer's blond hair was practically hidden under a black cap of thick wool, but it didn't manage to hide the diagonal scar sloping to the right on his forehead. Seifer claimed the scar had been caused by the needle of a Deadly Nadder's tail, but Reiku didn't believe him. It could have just been a story that Seifer told to make himself appear macho.

"Hey, hey," Seifer said as he dropped his arm around Reiku's shoulders to stop him, grinning down at Reiku. "Where are you going?"

"Seifer wants to talk with you, you know?" Raijin stated, brown eyes hard in an attempt to be intimidating though the effect didn't work on Reiku who had been more intimidated by an irate Sephiroth than a mindless sheep that followed the leader.

Raijin, though he liked to be called Rai for short, was a year younger than Seifer, standing slightly taller than the blond, with a muscular body and tan skin.

His black hair was short and he wore an orange sleeveless shirt and baggy dark pants with a necklace that had a thunderbolt-shaped pendant made of a lightweight metal hanging from the end of the thin links.

Rai was the muscle in the group and had supposedly broken a Gronckle's neck when he had been younger. There was no real proof behind the story, but a lot of people believed it.

"Affirmative." Fuu put in, her burnt sienna eye blinking blankly.

Fuu's light-colored steel-blue hair fell across the left side of her face and dropped to the bottom of her jaw to cover her left eye, leaving the right one exposed.

She was the most toned down in the group in terms of clothing, wearing a sleeveless blue tunic and pale trousers cut at the knees.

Fuu was the brains in the group despite how little she spoke, three years younger than Seifer and had apparently caused a Nightmare to back down by simply staring at it.

"Leave me alone, Seifer." Reiku grumbled, pushing the blond's arm off him and starting to walk away.

Riku had told him that ignoring Seifer was the best route instead of giving into whatever he said so that's what Reiku did; he ignored Seifer to the best of his ability despite how the blond always attempted to get under his skin.

"Oh, come on!" Seifer said, putting his arm back around the teen's shoulders, yanking back slightly to stop Reiku once again. "I want to show you something."

Before Reiku could react or ask what exactly the blond wanted to show him, Seifer gripped both of his shoulders hard and started pushing him to a nearby cage where Rai stood near the lever that opened it on the outside of the arena.

When had Rai even left the arena to get there? He must have left while Reiku was distracted by Seifer.

Reiku, however, knew what waited inside the cage and desperately began to dig his heels into the smooth metal floor in an attempt to stop Seifer from continuing to push him.

"Stop it, Seifer!"

"What's the matter?" Seifer asked with a smirk, ignoring the way Reiku was clawing at his hands to try and get him to let go. "Don't want to see a Monstrous Nightmare up close and personal?"

The dragon inside the enclosure snarled and rattled the door before roaring, banging against the door.

Seifer laughed at Reiku's terrified expression.

"Oi, Almasy!" a voice rang out, causing the blond to halt and Rai to immediately release the lever. "Leave Reiku alone."

Seifer sighed in mild disappointment, releasing his grip on Reiku's shoulders and casually raising his hands in the air, smiling faintly.

"Okay, okay, Mr. Fair."

Zack Fair the Righteous was the dragon trainer teacher and had extensive knowledge of almost every dragon the village knew of or had captured, compiling everything he knew into a book that every Viking was required to read.

Zack was well-built and had short, spiky black hair with bangs framing his face and clear sky blue eyes. His favorite weapon was one he had created himself, a large blade he called the Buster Sword; despite its obvious weight, Zack was able to wield the weapon with ease.

Seifer turned, barely brushing against Zack's shoulder as he strode past him, flicking his hand as he went to summon Fuu and Rai.

"C'mon, guys. It was getting boring anyway."

"Confirmatory." Fuu murmured as she closely trailed after the blond.

"Yeah, it wasn't fun anymore, you know!" Rai shouted, catching up to Seifer and Fuu as they exited the pit.

Riku scowled after Seifer as he entered the pit just seconds after the blond had left, immediately making his way over to the frozen Reiku, gently placing a hand on his brother's shoulder.

"Rei, it's okay now."

Reiku started slightly at the touch, looking at Riku with huge eyes before clinging to him, trembling as he gripped Riku's shirt tightly.

Automatically, Riku wrapped his arms around Reiku and held him close, petting his brother's hair to soothe him.

Next time he would have to make sure Seifer and his gang weren't training before their class started. Riku didn't want Seifer attempting to put his little brother into a dragon's cage again. And if he did try again, Riku would make sure to talk to Xehanort about what Seifer and his goons were attempting to do on a practically daily basis.

"Ri-Ri?" a gentle voice asked, causing Riku to look up to see a spiky-haired brunette staring at him with innocent blue eyes similar to a young child not quite comprehending what was happening in front of him.

"Hey, Sora." he greeted softly as a blond a year younger than him entered the arena, Zack shutting the metal door behind him to prevent the dragons from leaving in the middle of training.

Ventus came up to them, ocean blue eyes wondering what was going on.

Even though Ventus and Roxas were identical twins there were a few ways to tell them apart as Ventus's eyes had a grey tint to them while Roxas's were pure blue.

While Ventus wore grey trousers and a white tunic with a black jerkin, Roxas wore black trousers and a black tunic with a white and black jerkin.

Whereas Ventus wanted to be in dragon training, Roxas had refused, choosing instead to become an apprentice to the village's local grouch, Vexen the medical doctor who had broad expertise on all sorts of herbs and spices that he used for wounds among other things.

Roxas was also terrified of Monstrous Nightmares though no one was quite certain why he was scared of them.

"What's going on?" Ventus asked as Zack began to announce that the training would begin soon and to get ready.

"Just Seifer and his gang being asses." Riku muttered venomously, still holding onto Reiku.

Sora patted Reiku's back sympathetically, understating Reiku's dilemma since Seifer had picked on him until he had started dating Riku; Seifer never picked on Reiku whenever Riku was around him though so Sora had realized that Seifer was either intimidated by Riku or scared of him for some reason.

"All right, you guys!" Zack called, causing the teens to look in his direction. "Training's starting!"

* * *

Reiku stared in horror, frozen in terror by the multiple dragons flying around and the screams of the Vikings fighting them off.

He wasn't concerned that he could easily be picked off where he was, standing petrified out in the open. Half of his mind told him to hide in the nearest house.

Like he had predicted, the dragon raid was happening. The lanterns had been lit and raised up to reveal the dragons flying through the dark sky, making it easier for the Vikings to attack them.

Already, a Viking had captured a Terrible Terror with a net as well as a Hideous Zippleback.

Two more dragons for the arena, filling the last two cages in the arena.

A male in his early twenties ran through the buzzing village, pushing a strange wooden contraption in front of him, dark silver hair and golden yellow eyes standing out in the night.

The man was Sho, the assistant to Cid, the village's (practically) insane inventor.

Cid wasn't that insane, though as he had invented a lot of useful things.

The bola whip (single and two weight), a heavy net that held down the more powerful dragons long enough for the Vikings to grab before they could get free. He had also created helpful inventions around the village, too, like the dragon arena.

Sho headed to the open outskirts of the village, opening the contraption and setting up two curved wood pieces before pulling a thick string back and gazing through a small circular ring, closing an eye to get better accuracy.

The silver-haired male muttered numbers under his breath, slowly moving the mechanism as he followed the dragons soaring around, searching for the perfect target to attack.

He aimed at one stupidly hovering nearby then fired, a two rock bola sling whipping out.

The dragon Sho had been aiming for avoided the bola at the last minute, but the weapon still managed to catch something that Sho hadn't seen in the dark night sky.

He heard its roar as it fell into the nearby forest, a faint crash resounding as it smashed into the ground, and grinned hysterically.

"I got something!" Sho screamed excitedly, eagerly looking around for someone that had perhaps witnessed his feat. "Did any of you hectopascals see that?!"

"Shut up, Sho!" a few Vikings yelled, already used to the man's insane vocabulary and not in the mood to deal with his turbulent emotions during a raid.

Sho ignored the grouped reprimand, eagerly running toward the forest to acquire his catch before it could manage to break free of its binds.

* * *

Riku and Sora exited the dragon arena, Riku making sure to keep the door thrown wide open behind them to make the believable appearance that a dragon had burst out of it, adding a bit of ash and dust to make it look as if a dragon's fire had struck the metal.

They had just finished freeing one of the dragons, the Gronckle, using the raid as an opportunity to slip to the arena unseen and complete their work. Riku and Sora had been freeing dragons for a while, usually completing the job during the night or during raids. They freed dragons intermittently and at random amounts to make sure no one recognized a pattern.

They both glanced up at the black sky when there was a faint roar and Sora's eyes widened at the sight of the faint black outline tumbling into the forest ringing the outer edge of the village.

"Van!" he screamed desperately.

* * *

**End of Chapter 1! :) Know how many words this was without the author's note? Probably about 5,000 something; I updated it so I'm not entirely certain. Pretty good, eh? I think if I keep every chapter at about that length, this story will be huge by the time it's finished.**

**Anyway, that's it for now. :3 See you next time.**

**Please Read and Review. :D**


	2. Dawn of the Fury

Chapter 2- Dawn of the Fury

**Ah, finally! Chapter 2! I bet you're all thinking that, right? Well sorry for the late update; I've been trying to focus on my original more than Fanfic but I decided I could do this and my original :3  
**

**Anyway, thanks to Animesaki for helping me out as my co-author/beta person xD Also she gets credit for the 'number crunching butt munch' thing.**

**I don't own HTTYD, TWEWY, or KH ):**

**Please Read and Review. :)**

* * *

Sora and Riku sprinted through the forest as fast as their legs would carry them, determined to reach where the dragon had fallen before Sho did.

_Van, Van, Van. _Sora's mind chanted, keeping up with Riku even as the underbrush attempted to tangle around his feet and trip him up.

The brunette wouldn't be able to live with himself if something happened to Van.

Riku paused at the top of a steep slope, spotting Sho down below, tightening a rope around the broad mouth of a medium-sized sleek black dragon that was snared in his bola contraption.

When he saw Sora try to bolt past him, Riku quickly grabbed his arm, dragging him behind a nearby tree to prevent the brunette from making a fool of himself or worse, hurting himself.

Riku placed a hand over Sora's mouth when he made to protest, muttering soothing words under his breath in an attempt to calm the brunette and cause him to think rationally.

They couldn't rush headlong into this sort of situation. If Sho figured out what they did—what they have been doing—everything would be ruined.

Riku glanced around the trunk of the tree, watching Sho start to drag the struggling dragon back toward the village, the two wing flaps on its powerful tail slapping the ground as a low growl resounded from its throat, furiously shaking its head from side to side in an attempt to throw off the rope muzzling its mouth.

He frowned before releasing Sora and motioning for the brunette to follow him; they had to get back to the village before someone noticed their absence and mentioned it to someone else or worse, told Xehanort.

Sora glanced in the direction Sho had gone helplessly, obviously wanting to go after him directly to free the dragon, but Riku grabbed his wrist gently before the brunette could get any ideas.

"We'll get him. Don't worry. But we can't help him if we're discovered—we won't be able to help others if we're discovered."

Riku spoke softly, hoping he could appeal to the brunette's rare sense of correct judgment.

Sora remained quiet for a while before reluctantly nodding, slowly following Riku back to the village.

* * *

Sora and Riku quietly merged with the small crowd gathered at the entrance to the dragon training pit, several Vikings murmuring amongst themselves as Sho dragged the still struggling dragon toward the enclosure.

Xehanort stood amid the mass of Vikings, watching passively as the ebony reptile was hauled past him before he turned and ambled back to his house, resting his arms behind his back.

Once he had gotten farther away from the crowd of Vikings, a measured smile crossed his face.

He finally had his Night Fury.

Xehanort entered his house as the Vikings below began to disperse, shutting the door behind him before he grabbed a thick book from the bookshelf closest to his desk and set it on the smooth desktop.

Sitting at the desk, he opened the book to reveal several hollowed out pages which contained a small glass vial with red liquid.

Xehanort picked up the phial, shaking it slightly as he looked at the minimal amount of liquid swishing around.

He frowned, setting the bottle back into the hollowed-out book and shutting it.

There was only about a months' worth left.

* * *

"That—that number crunching butt munch!"

Kariya's brown eyes watched the thirty-five-year-old male pace around the small workshop from where he sat at a workbench.

Cid had always had a way with words when he was worked up.

The seventeen-year-old had just passed by the inventor's shop to pick up Sho only to come across Cid in mid-rant; after he had dragged Kariya into the shop, the inventor then continued to rant to Kariya about his 'irresponsible boyfriend'.

"I oughta shove my spear up his ass for being a foolish…_fool_!"

Cid gave a frustrated growl, furiously rubbing his leather gloved hands through his short blond hair in exasperation.

Kariya sighed, resting his chin in his hand as he continued to politely listen to the inventor's rants, knowing that even if he did speak up to defend Sho's actions Cid wouldn't listen to him.

Cid took a brief break from his tirade, rubbing his facial stubble before tying a thin jacket around the waist of his green slacks and plopping down on a bench to irately tinker with something, blue eyes hard.

Well, Kariya supposed, tinkering with something was better than drowning his rage in mead; the blond was even worse when he was drunk.

Kariya stretched out his legs before running a hand through his orange hair, held up by four x-shaped metal pieces, before he stood up and brushed off his brown trousers, the long cross-shaped chain links hanging at his side jingling from the movement.

Maybe he could leave before Cid regained steam.

"Thank you for the hospitality, Cid, but I—"

"I can' believe that idjit!" Cid stood up abruptly, the container holding several charcoal pencils toppling over when he slammed his hands on the small table, the frail silver necklace around his neck swaying with the action.

Kariya slowly sat back down, pushing a pair of orange-tinted glasses up his nose, realizing Cid wouldn't allow him to leave in the middle of a rant.

"Next time he does that I'll let him become dragon fodder. See if'n he does that again!"

"Hectopascal, guess what I added to the dragon containment unit!"

Sho entered the workshop, looking utterly proud of himself only to pale when he spotted Cid glowering at him.

Before Sho could even say anything, Cid had already cornered him, grabbing his nearby spear and pointing the sharp tip at the silver-haired teen.

"Got anything t' say fer yourself, boy?"

Sho remained quiet for several seconds, gauging whether one answer would be worse than another before he responded, "I added a Night Fury."

Cid narrowed his sky blue eyes, even though he was impressed by the teen's honesty, before pointing his lance at a nearby table.

"Git back to work, idjit."

"Positive." Sho replied, immediately heading toward the bench before Cid could change his mind and whack him with the spear.

* * *

Several days later, Reiku's dragon training class had their first chance to test their skills against a dragon. The four Vikings each held a bucket containing water at Zack's request. Sora and Ventus looked excited to test their skills while Riku stared determinedly at the door containing the dragon they were going to train against; Reiku wasn't so sure about training against a dragon like the other three.

"For today's lesson, you're up against a Hideous Zippleback." Zack explained, standing on the high ground outside the arena, hand on the lock to the Zippleback's cage door. "Try to figure out which head lights the other head's flammable gas."

Reiku stood next to Riku, clutching the bucket of water to his chest as Zack released the cage door's latch.

The double doors burst open as the dragon slammed into them and green smoke poured out from the enclosure, quickly enveloping the arena and limiting the Vikings' sight.

Reiku looked around frantically, searching for the stealthy double-headed dragon, realizing he had also lost track of Riku in the dense smog.

There was a low growl nearby and Reiku froze as two long, serpentine necks appeared on either side of him, red spikes along the backs of the dragon's split necks vibrating slightly.

The Zippleback slowly ambled closer to Reiku on its short legs, bottle green body blending in with the green fumes, the red highlights along its body and cream underbelly the only thing distinguishing the medium-sized dragon from the mist.

The dragon lifted up their heads to their full height, split tail curling up behind it, and stared down at the young Viking.

Reiku trembled as the Zippleback's twin heads gazed at him before the left head began to sharply click its short upper teeth against its long lower teeth, creating sparks from the friction.

Zack looked around, leaning against the arena's roof as he searched for any sign of the dragon or the fledgling Vikings.

He noticed a frozen Reiku standing in the center of the arena and staring at the Zippleback, sparks flying from the reptile's mouth.

"Throw the water on the head!" Zack shouted, grabbing the metal railing and leaning on it. "Reiku, throw the water!"

Reiku blinked at the order, temporarily forgetting his fear, and quickly tossed the water at the sparking head only to miss when the Zippleback sharply pulled back to avoid the liquid.

The dragon stared down at the wet ground where the water had landed before both heads glanced at each other then snickered, turning back to the terrified Reiku.

"Reiku!"

Just as the other head opened its mouth, green gas building at the back of its throat, both heads looked surprised when the head that was creating the sparks suddenly became drenched.

"Good shot, Riku!" Zack called.

Both heads looked up to see Riku hanging upside down from a metal rung of the enclosure's domed roof, holding the empty bucket in both hands.

The dragon hissed at the silverette, flaring and vibrating the short wings folded against its side as Riku dropped the bucket to the ground below.

Riku let go of the rung, flipping over and dropping onto the drenched head, grabbing the straight horns protruding from the dragon's skull.

He sharply twisted the horns to the side, using his strength to drag the head to the ground until its nose horn touched the floor.

The Zippleback lost its balance with one head pressed to the ground, claws on its right legs desperately scratching at the ground as it attempted to maintain equilibrium, only to end up crashing onto its side with a low rumble, the collapse subsequently bringing the dragon's twin head down as well.

Riku smirked at the toppled dragon, breathing heavily as he kept his strong hold on the dragon's horns. Well, that wasn't so hard.

The Zippleback growled, throwing Riku off with a swift shake of its head and sending the silver-haired teen skidding across the floor, climbing back to its feet with snarl.

The dragon took several steps forward then shrieked when it spotted Zack holding up a black and yellow striped eel, both of the dragon's heads practically pressing against its back to keep from touching the poisonous fish as it backed up with the black-haired Viking slowly stepping forward.

Zack guided the dragon back to its cage using its fear of the eel, shutting the door once the Zippleback was inside and locking the cage door.

"Good job, everyone." Zack praised, turning to the others as he properly disposed of the now useless eel. "Next class, I'll explain what we'll be studying."

Reiku followed after Riku and the other two as they started to leave only to stop when a hand was placed on his shoulder.

"Hey, Rei." Zack said. "If you don't mind, would you clean the arena real fast?"

"Oh. Sure. I can do that."

"Thanks." Zack grinned, patting Reiku's shoulder as he strode past him.

Reiku started straightening the arena, pausing when he heard Zack say, "And, hey, good work out there today."

Reiku stared after Zack before he smiled to himself, continuing to work.

He actually felt pretty good about himself; it was the first time he had come out of his fear of dragons. Maybe he could manage to get over his fear someday.

Reiku startled when someone suddenly grabbed both of his shoulders, becoming alarmed when he noticed that it was Rai who had grabbed him.

"Well, well, if it isn't my favorite scaredy Viking." Seifer laughed as he came up to Reiku with Fuu strolling past him. "Cleaning up all by your lonesome today?"

"Let me go, Seifer." Reiku said, trying to sound braver than he felt.

It wasn't like he could fight back against Seifer or his gang; they not only outnumbered him, but they were stronger than he was.

"Mm…nah." Seifer snapped his fingers and Rai started to drag Reiku to the nearest cage where Fuu already had her hand on the lock.

Reiku started to struggle, but Rai was bigger and stronger than he was, keeping a firm grip on the silverette's shoulders.

"Riku!"

"That goody-goody isn't going to come save you." Seifer growled as Fuu unlocked and opened the cage door slightly.

Just as quickly as Fuu had opened the gate, Reiku was shoved into the closure and the door was slammed shut behind him, plunging him in darkness.

Seifer laughed as Fuu locked the door, high-fiving her and Rai before the trio headed out of the arena.

"Yggdrasil doesn't need wimps like you!" Seifer called back.

"Yeah, you give Vikings a bad name, you know!" Rai shouted.

"Affirmative." Fuu agreed.

Reiku desperately banged on the door and rattled it, hoping someone would hear him and come get him out, blood rushing to his ears and tightening his throat until he felt like he was going to be sick from terror.

Reiku froze when he heard a soft growl, instantly turning around and pressing his back against the gate as a pair of glowing pale gold eyes opened up in the darkness, staring straight at him.

There was a faint snort before Reiku heard sniffing as the eyes slowly came toward him.

Reiku banged on the door with his fist again, keeping his back against it as his heart threatened to burst out his chest; turning his back to a dragon was not a wise idea.

"Riku!"

A purple flash of light briefly lit up the enclosure as the dragon released a blast of plasma energy at the ground, creating a very faint fire from the shot.

The Night Fury was couched low in an almost cautious gesture, short neck scrunched up, left flank exposed as it gazed at the young Viking curiously.

It used its front leg to scratch at the right side of its jaw where two stubby appendages jutted as if feigning disinterest in the teen trembling before it, but Reiku knew that acting disinterested really meant that the dragon was interested in the potential prey.

Gradually, the dragon took a step forward, the large main pair of its bat-like wings folded against its sleek back as it sniffed the air again, lifting its head a bit to better take in Reiku's scent.

Reiku lowered himself slightly, on the verge of hyperventilating at the sight of the approaching dragon; he was hoping that by sinking himself down a bit, he would make himself appear smaller and less of a threat.

Or at the very least, less appealing.

He knew that whatever he did wouldn't matter though as dragons always went for the kill.

Reiku yelped when the door suddenly disappeared from his back and he was instantly yanked from the cage, the gate closing until it remained open a crack as a brunette slipped into the enclosure.

"Are you okay, Rei?!" Riku questioned frantically, holding Reiku close as Reiku immediately clung to him with a choked sob.

Sora exited the cage, quietly shutting the door behind him and locking it.

As Riku soothed his distressed brother he glanced at Sora, silently asking something.

The brunette nodded.

* * *

Riku furiously stormed into the mess hall hours later after he had finally managed to console Reiku, searching for the miserable maggot known as Seifer Almsay.

His eyes narrowed when he spotted the blond sitting at a far table with Rai and Fuu, laughing and joking around with his cohorts.

"Oi, Seifer!"

Seifer looked up when he heard his name and smirked at the approaching Riku, setting down his cup of buttermilk.

"Hey, Dawn. How's your widdle brother doing?"

Before Seifer could continue talking, Riku struck the cocky blond across the face with a right hook, knocking him out of his seat.

Rai and Fuu instantly went to their leader's side, standing slightly in front of the blond to defend him from the furious silverette.

Riku pointed at the stunned Seifer, growling, "How dare you stick my brother into a dragon's cage! I oughta feed you to a Monstrous Nightmare for what you did to him!"

Seifer scowled, standing up and wiping the blood off his lip. "Hey! It ain't my fault the wimp is scared of dragons!"

"Yeah, not his fault, you know!" Rai put in.

"Affirmative." Fuu said.

Riku scowled at the defense, jabbing Seifer's chest as he drew himself up to his full height. "You try something like that again and I won't go so easy on you."

With a final glare at Seifer, Riku turned on his heel and strode off, deciding it was better to drop his anger toward the bully and focus his attention more on protecting Reiku.

Seifer growled, clenching his fists as he watched the retreating silverette, before suddenly lunging forward and wrapping his left arm around Riku's neck, yanking him back.

When his back hit Seifer's chest, Riku instantly kicked his foot back to strike Seifer's leg, forcing the blond to let go of him with a surprised yell.

Riku immediately turned around once he was free and tackled Seifer to the floor.

Fuu and Rai uncertainly stood nearby as the two started to punch and try to get the upper hand over each other, not sure whether they should help Seifer or let him deal with Riku on his own.

A few Vikings that had been in the mess hall when the fight had started began watching the escalating battle and started rooting for either Riku or Seifer to win the scuffle.

"What is going on here?"

The noise instantly died down and the small crowd parted, several Vikings managing to look ashamed, as Xehanort approached.

Riku quickly shoved Seifer away, panting as he sat up and swiped his arm across his mouth.

Seifer growled at Riku, glaring at him as he straightened his hat, but made no move to attack again in Xehanort's presence.

Xehanort gazed at the two disheveled boys silently for several seconds before tilting his head slightly.

"To my hut, boys."

* * *

After a bit of deliberation once he had heard the two different stories about what had happened to cause the fight, Xehanort decided to punish Seifer by having him shear the sheep before the next trading ship came in; Yggdrasil exported wool to the trader that came every three months in exchange for other goods the merchant had. It was an easy exchange and allowed the village to obtain items that they couldn't grow or get on their own.

Xehanort's punishment for Riku was having him milk the goats and make half the milk into cheese and the rest into buttermilk.

Seifer didn't look entirely happy about his punishment but reluctantly nodded after a mild glare at the silverette next to him.

Once he had been dismissed, Riku headed toward Sora's house so he could talk to the brunette before they made their way to the dragon arena to free some dragons.

* * *

Reiku woke up when he felt that something was off.

The past day had been strangely peaceful; there were no nightmares, no dragon raids, and Seifer's group had left him alone.

They glared at him from a distance, but never approached, even when he was by himself.

Reiku was certain it had been the Elder who had ordered the trio to leave him alone and he couldn't be more grateful to Xehanort; Seifer's gang not bothering him gave Reiku one less thing to worry about.

The teen got out of bed, padding toward Riku's room and peeking inside.

His brother's bed was empty, the sheets still neatly made and revealing that Riku hadn't even slept in his bed last night.

Reiku frowned slightly, heading downstairs.

Where would Riku have gone in the minutes before dawn?

When he didn't spot Riku in the kitchen, Reiku trotted outside to continue his search, shivering in the chilly pre-dawn air.

Reiku knew he probably should have quickly changed into proper clothes before heading outside, but Reiku was concerned as to where his brother had gone.

This wasn't like Riku to leave before he woke up.

He quietly searched for his brother, wondering if Riku had gone out early to meet up with Sora for some reason, but if he had Riku would have mentioned it to Reiku so he wouldn't worry.

Reiku wandered through the silent village as he looked for Riku, the dew-damp grass wetting his bare feet.

Where could his brother have gone at this time?

The silverette paused when he heard a noise and looked toward where the sound had come from, gazing toward Sora's house.

"Riku?"

Reiku headed toward the sound, the hair on the back of his neck and along his arms standing on end, though he wasn't sure if it was from the cold or anxiety.

He heard the noise again and realized it couldn't have been caused by his brother; it sounded more animal-like than human.

Reiku instantly froze when he saw the body of a Night Fury crouched by the side of Sora's house, its head stuck in a basket of pickled fish, snorts and swallowing noises coming from the woven container.

Reiku took a step back, the dragon instantly lifting its head from the basket when it heard the subtle movement, thick mobile ear plates raised and twitching as the Night Fury licked its teeth and lips.

When the dragon glanced in his direction, Reiku instantly bolted to the nearest building, the black reptile watching him for several seconds before bounding after him.

Reiku yelped when he was tackled to the ground, the Night Fury pinning him down by his shoulders with its powerful front legs.

The Fury rumbled quietly, glaring at the frightened Viking before raising its wings in a threatening gesture as it opened its mouth.

Reiku trembled and closed his eyes, waiting for the dragon to blast his head off.

A loud snarl sounded directly in his ear before the pressure on his shoulders was suddenly gone.

Cautiously, Reiku opened his eyes, seeing no Night Fury standing above him, and shakily sat up to look around.

He saw someone running toward the nearby forest, noticing that the boy appeared to be around his age with spiky black hair and pale skin.

A roar sounded in the distance and the naked boy returned the call as huge black wings spread from his back, lifting him into the air.

Reiku stared dumbly after the strange winged boy, half of his mind wondering where in Valhalla the Night Fury had disappeared to and the other half questioning who the boy was and where he had come from.

* * *

**And end Chapter 2 xD I hope you all can't wait for the next chapter. Though really only Anime is reading this, but I'm still grateful either way.**

**She puts up with my insanity and crazy ideas xD**

**Anyway, remember to Read and Review.**

**See y'all next chapter~! :D**


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